Peaches
are possibly the most celebrated fruit in New Jersey. If you can resist biting
into a whole peach or slicing it and eating it au natural the minute you buy
one, there are many different ways to prepare and eat this fruit. You can grill it or even
skin it, slice it and freeze it for a fresh treat long
after the season ends in September.

So
popular is the peach that New Jersey governors declare August "Jersey
Fresh Peach Month," when peaches are at their peak. The New Jersey Peach Promotion Council has
been sponsoring and promoting various peach events (this year starting July
21st and going through August) at farmers markets, supermarkets and restaurants.
This year, there are more than 20 Peach Parties and other peach events
throughout New Jersey in more than 20 counties and all along the Jersey Shore.

Preserving
peaches, like our mothers and grandmothers did a century ago, is popular
again. According to Pam Mount, farmer extraordinaire
of Terhune Orchards, "While canning takes some time, with blanching the
peaches, packing them in special vacuum jars and heat-sealing the jars in
canning pots, freezing them is quick as one-to-three, and you have virtually
fresh peaches for any time you crave them, or you can put them in a pie-shell
and have peach pie any time of year.”

Mix
together 1/4 tsp. of ascorbic acid (available in health food stores and gourmet
supermarkets) and 1/4 cup of water in a container that you can freeze peaches
in. This is to keep peaches from turning brown.

Peel
and slice peaches (if left on, skin gets tough in freezer)

Put
peaches into ascorbic acid-water mixture and stir gently to coat. Add sugar if you like them real sweet.

Cover
container and put in freezer. If you
want slices separated, freeze enough to harden, then separate slices and put
back in freezer until needed. A good
combination is mixed peaches and raspberries frozen together. You can prepare raspberries the same way.

Freeze for PieFor
a delicious peach or peach-raspberry pie, coat fruit with the same ascorbic
acid-water mixture (sugar optional).
Follow your favorite peach pie recipe for the filling, but don't cook
it. Turn the filling mixture into a pie pan (without the crust) and
freeze. When frozen, remove the formed
peach pie filling from the pie pan and place in plastic bag, back in freezer.
When ready to make the pie, buy or make pie crust and line your pie pan same
size as what you froze peaches in; do not bake.
Then carefully slide frozen filling out of plastic bag into crust. Bake pie according to recipe.

Freeze for Jam

1) Cut peaches into small chunks

2) Mix with pectin to thicken. Add sugar if you
like it sweet

3)
Put in plastic tub and freeze till ready to use

Nutritionally,
Peaches are low in calories, high in fiber: a medium size peach has just 35 calories and 2.6 grams of
fiber. Peaches are rich in antioxidants,
such as Vitamins A & C, important to maintain good health and skin. Antioxidants
are substances that protect the body by eliminating free radicals, which cause
cell damage and can contribute to aging. The sun brings out free radicals in
the skin and antioxidants protect skin cells by counteracting free radical
activity.

For a refreshing peach
drink this summer, try making Peach Vinegar Scrub.
Shrubs,
sometimes called drinking vinegars, are an infusion of fruit, sugar,
and acid. They were developed to preserve fruit before refrigeration existed
and are a great way to use up slightly bruised or overripe seasonal fruit. This
easy peach shrub starts by macerating peaches with sugar for two days and then
adding vinegar and basil leaves. After about a week, the infusion is strained
and you’re left with a potent sweet-tart drinking vinegar that has the essence
of peach and a touch of herb flavor, ready to be turned into a nonalcoholic
spritzer or added to cocktails.

To make a peach shrub
spritzer, combine 2 parts club soda with 1 part peach shrub and pour over ice.
Taste and add more club soda or shrub as needed. This recipe is from Suzy
Brannon, Product Manager at Chow.com. See her videohere for step-by-step instructions.